LNG Bunkering for Marine Vessels at the Port of New Orleans: Sitting and Facility Components

015967452016Final ReportPDFTech ReportDTRT13-G-UTC50Best practicesBunkeringCrude oilFeasibility analysisFuel storageLiquefied natural gasLiterature reviewsPortsShipsEnergyMarine TransportationTerminals and FacilitiesVehicles and EquipmentUnited StatesLouisianaMaritime Transportation Research and Education Center (MarTREC)Stich, BethanyAmdal, James R.Webb, PeterMaritime Transportation Research and Education Center (MarTREC)University of New Orleans. Transportation InstituteUniversity of Arkansas, FayettevilleUnited States. Dept. of Transportation. Research and Innovative Technology AdministrationUS Transportation CollectionThis paper represents the efforts by the Merritt C. Becker, Jr. UNO Transportation Institute (UNOTI) to assist the Port of New Orleans (PONO) in evaluating the feasibility of equipping the PONO for the storage and shore-side infrastructure needed for fueling vessels powered by Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG). The report gives the current status of various projects that have been built according to site-specific applications of best practices in the industry and related regulatory agencies. This project was initiated in the summer of 2014 when the Port of New Orleans tasked UNOTI with investigating the feasibility of an LNG bunkering facility within their jurisdiction. Since that time, crude oil prices have been falling significantly. At their peak they were in excess of $115 per barrel. Today, the price per barrel is roughly $37. This is a decrease of $80 over a very short period of time. Consequently, as indicated by an 18 month literature review, key person interviews and discussions with a knowledgeable group of regional stakeholders, the extended duration of depressed oil prices (which continues downward) has the marine fuel component of the maritime industry in a holding pattern regarding the widespread adoption of LNG for marine vessels. However, this is not the case for either LNG as an export commodity or as an industrial feedstock within Louisiana. There are significant LNG export terminals under various stages of development with the first project being Cheniere\u2019s Sabine Pass LNG Export Terminal, which plans to ship its first LNG cargo in January 2016. Along the chemical corridor between New Orleans and Baton Rouge, LNG is fueling an industrial renaissance with over $22B being committed for industrial plant expansions or new builds, principally for the petrochemical and 6 fertilizer sectors. Collectively, the state is seeing over $80B being committed for LNG related projects in all categories, with another concentration of projects south of Lake Charles, LA. Most recently two projects were announced in Plaquemines Parish, downriver of New Orleans, on both the East and West Banks of the Mississippi River. These additions show the geographic distribution of LNG Export Terminals statewide.75